Rob's Top 5 of 2021 So Far
1
Smol Data
Inconvenience Store
Holy moly!! No new album inspires me like Inconvenience Store. Smol and her mysterious Data have taken all sorts of musical inspirations, stirred them into a big bowl, thrown that bowl on the floor - breaking it - and made me lick it up, glass and all. Wow, that was a bad analogy. But my point is that this record is a tasty hodgepodge of genius that demolishes your expectations at every turn!! Do you like good songwriting? What about descriptive imagery (“he’s a tall boy deep when I walk in,” reminds me of the one frat party I went to in college and subsequently left out of discomfort)? How about vocals that sound like they're being sung 2 inches from your face (in a good way)? If you answered yes to any or all of those questions, this record is for you.
2
Weezer
OK Human
Weezer has put out two albums this year, and one of them was very, very bad. In fact, I'm supposed to write an SPB review about how bad it is (sorry, Loren! Expect it on your desk by Friday). But the other record - OK Human - is pretty decent! I stayed up till midnight with a Weezer-superfan pal to listen to it, and we both were pleasantly surprised. The concept of a Weezer record with all acoustic instruments is pretty cool on its own, but you never know what kind of string cheese Rivers will pull out of his ass for something like this. And yeah, while the cheese did make plenty of appearances (“Gosh darn this cast iron lounger, my butt will bruise,”) OK Human is my favorite thing Cuomo ‘n co. have put out in a long time.
3
We Are The Union
Ordinary Life
When I first heard We Are The Union in 9th grade, they absolutely blew my mind. I hadn't heard a ska punk band playing Lifetime-esque melodic hardcore before, and I downloaded their album for free on Purevolume. However, when they got back together put out Self Care, the ska-memery felt a bit forced to me (though it's a decent record). Ordinary Life, on the other hand, is maybe the best thing they’ve ever done. It's not Dan Yemin-core (shoutout Jordan), and it's not mimicking any third-wave reunion, either. No, it sounds wholly honest and showcases what this band is right now. Yes, it’s ska punk. But it’s not limited by the expectations of what We Are The Union should sound like (which is fitting, considering this record serves as vocalist/guitarist Reade Wolcott’s coming out as a trans woman). Also, the horn parts are the best I've heard in a new ska record in a long time. They're carefully placed and serve the song well. Good job, WATU. You're making me a fan all over again.
4
155
Wake The Dead
155 is more than a podcast - it’s a cult. Since hosts Sam Sutherland and Josiah Hughes finished discussing every blink-182 song and rebranded as a “podcast about ‘punk’ songs,” they’ve released weekly compilations of their listeners covering the song they choose to discuss that week. For Comeback Kid’s seminal hardcore anthem, “Wake The Dead,” their followers outdid themselves. Every cover on this compilation is good, even if it's silly or meant to punish the listener. On that note, if you grew up around flashy evangelical churches like me, I recommend listening to the cover by Teen Jazz Worship Team. Its accuracy was both hilarious and painful to listen to.
5
Lucy Dacus
Home Video
OKAY, so this record only just came out, but it’s already one of the best of 2021. This is the softest Lucy Dacus record to date, which for a rock artist can be career suicide. But she really earned it with these songs. The stripped-down style makes for great storytelling and actually reminds me a lot of Dave Bazan. Lucy, if you ever read this, let’s talk about our times at VBS.
